Book Review: As She Fades by Abbi Glines

Published in 2018 by Feiwel and Friends, an imprint of Pan Macmillan – hits shelves on the 10th of April

260 pages 

3 out of 5 stars

Goodreads Sypnosis:

From the #1 New York Times- and USA Today-bestselling author of the Rosemary Beach and The Vincent Boys series, Abbi Glines delivers another smoldering, compulsively readable YA romance with As She Fades.

On the night of her high school graduation, Vale McKinley and her boyfriend Crawford are in a terrible car accident that leaves Crawford in a coma. They were supposed to spend the summer planning for college, for a bright future full of possibility. Together. Instead, Vale spends long days in the hospital, hoping Crawford will awaken.

Slate Allen, a college friend of Vale’s brother, has been visiting his dying uncle at the same hospital. When he and Vale meet, she can’t deny the flutter of an illicit attraction. She tries to ignore her feelings, but she’s not immune to Slate’s charm. Slowly, they form a cautious friendship.

Then, Crawford wakes up . . . with no memory of Vale or their relationship. Heartbroken, Vale opts to leave for college and move on with her life. Except now, she’s in Slate’s territory, and their story is about to take a very strange turn.

My Review:

I was sent an advanced reader’s copy of this book by Pan Macmillan Australia in exchange for an honest review. This does not impact my thoughts on the book at all. 

Okay, so I did like this book, Vale was a lovely main character, very sweet, she loved her family and her boyfriend, and was shattered when he became comatose after a tragic accident. I found myself feeling sad for her, but I’m glad she decided to do something for herself and allow herself to experience the whole university thing, I loved it when Vale was doing little things such as getting her first job and experiencing things, rather than just being doting by her boyfriend’s side whilst she waits for him to wake up; I agree, I don’t think Crawford would have wanted her to put her life on hold whilst he was recovering. 

I liked the dynamic between Vale and her brothers, and I liked the scenes Vale shared with Charlie and Mae; both proved to be a comfort to Vale, I think. 

I say, I think, because this is where things became slightly confusing – just after Vale and Slate (who when the reader met him, he was described as being a “slut”, which to be honest I didn’t think was necessary, but there you go), we embark into part 2 of the book, where everything gets flipped on it’s head. 

To avoid spoilers, I won’t go into too much detail but everything I thought I knew about the story was flipped on it’s head, and I found it confusing, I was waiting for something to click and make sense but it just didn’t happen. The dramatic irony was definitley real though, and I only wish the story as it was in part one continued into part 2, because there were a lot of enjoyable parts – I loved the childhood innocence of Vales’ nieces, who spied Slate and one of the Nurses making out in the hospital, it made for some chuckles in amongst the angst of Crawford being comatose. And I really was cheering for Vale when she realised that she needed to do things for herself, and I liked the fact that this constantly had me wondering what was happening, even if I ended it on a confusing note. The sudden switch in points of view were great though, it was interesting seeing things as Slate did, and it definitely slightly warmed me up to his character, and his thoughts and feelings regarding both Vale and his own ailing Uncle were quite effective at times. I just wish that part two didn’t take that confusing turn, as I’m still piecing together what might of happened. 

All in all, although I found it confusing, it was a fast paced read that kept me wondering what was happening, at times I couldn’t put it down! 

As She Fades is released on the 10th of April 2018, thank you again to Pan Macmillan Australia for the review copy. 

Happy Reading,

Brooklyn.